B-Side: Family and Dads

Father’s Day is this weekend, and we hope you’ll enjoy our hour-long show about family and dads.

On this edition of B-Side we’re offering a little unsolicited advice, and some fatherly humor as we explore our relationships with people we’re tied to by blood or common history.

First: B-Side’s Tamara Keith and her brother Donovan head to a family fun center to play ski ball, air hockey, and talk about family.

Then: Golf is the ultimate sport of dads. So in honor of Father’s Day, B-Side’s Tamara Keith went golfing with her father, husband and father-in-law. On this edition of the show, we bring you some of our favorite stories about dads.

“Ebert Whipple” Sarah Neal:
Sarah’s grandfather left behind a volume of messages – and listening to them has helped her understand a man she hardly knew before he died.

“Esselen” John Peabody:
This piece is about connecting with even more distant relatives. John Peabody introduces us to a woman who is learning the language of her ancestors.

“Baby Max” Sarah Baughn:
Getting to the birth of baby Max too B-Side’s Sarah Baugn on a surprising journey – where she had to deal with gestational diabetes, pre-term labor, and 5 weeks of bed rest before getting to the big day. Sarah takes us along for the ride.

“1000 Postcards” Rene Gutel:
Rene’s dad wanted to keep in touch when she went away to college, so he sent her a postcard. And then another, and another, and another.

“Vietdamned” Tamara Keith:
Every family has its secrets. The things everyone knows about but no one talks about. For B-Side’s Tamara Keith, a piece of fiction revealed one of these unspoken bits of family history.

“Dad Humor” David Johns:
Why do dads tell such bad jokes? Probably mostly because they can, because after all, they’re the dad, and everyone else in the family pretty much has to listen. Or maybe there’s some kind of evolutionary explanation for the dinner table ritual. Maybe telling bad jokes is a way for the breadwinner to ensure his kids don’t get too comfortable feeding at the family trough. Whatever the reason, there’s more than ample evidence to document the phenomenon. B-Side contributor Dave Johns has the story.